Freelancing is becoming more and more popular in recent years and if you are interested in this career path, you may be wondering, ‘is freelancing right for me?’.
With the flexibility that working for yourself offers, not to mention the ability to be your own boss, being in charge of your own workload and taking control of your finances and how much you earn, it’s safe to say that freelancing is something that many people will have considered.
However, it’s worth noting that freelancing isn’t always quite as plain sailing as it might initially seem. With inspirational pictures of freelancers working from the beach, cocktail in hand, it’s easy to think that the life of a freelancer is remarkably easy, but that’s certainly not always the case.
As a freelancer, you’ve got to be prepared to undertake many tasks and wear many hats, it’s also imperative that you’re aware of some of the risks that come with being a freelancer, such as uncertainty when it comes to your income.
Therefore, before committing to the life of a freelancer, you need to weigh up the pros and cons in order to determine whether it’s really right for you. Here are 9 questions to help you think about whether freelancing is right for you.
Are you self-motivated?
One of the most important elements of being a freelancer is ensuring that you’re self-motivated. You’re no longer an employee who’s told what to do, when and where to work; you’re now in charge of almost every aspect of your business, so it’s imperative that you’re able to self-motivate yourself.
You’ll need to hold yourself accountable when it comes to deciding when and where to work, how much workload you’re willing to take on and how hard you’re willing to work in order to meet certain deadlines.
Failure to self-motivate will likely result in unhappy clients, which in turn could seriously impact on your ability to sustain yourself financially as a freelancer.
Can you manage your time and schedule well?
This point ties in with the idea of being self-motivated; as a freelancer, you also need to be prepared to manage your own time and you need to be comfortable setting your own work schedule, too.
Managing your time well as a freelancer is an integral part of the job as you’re the only person responsible for your workload and if you’re unable to manage your time and delegate your time well between various tasks, then you could soon find yourself feeling incredibly overwhelmed.
Are you able to work in almost any working environment?
One of the best things about being a freelancer and working for yourself is that you can choose where you want to work.
Instead of being chained to a desk five days a week, you might decide that you want to work in a coffee shop one day, then at your dining room table the next day and perhaps even from your sofa or bed on some days.
If you plan on living a more nomadic lifestyle as a freelancer, then you may end up working in hotel rooms, airport lounges and indeed, even on the beach. As a freelancer, you need to ensure that you’re able to work in almost any working environment, providing that there’s a decent internet connection.
Do you have a specific skill that you can offer?
Of course, before you become an “official” freelancer, you must first decide what kind of freelancing you want to do.
For example, if you’re a particularly skilled writer, then freelance copywriting or editing might be the best option for you. Whereas if you’re more skilled at designing websites or various online platforms, you may decide to pursue a freelance career in web design or software development.
Whatever line of freelance work you decide to embark on, you must ensure that you have a specific skill (or skill set) that you can utilise and work with in order to offer your services as a freelancer.
Are you comfortable taking risks?
It goes without saying that being a freelancer comes with a certain level of risk and uncertainty.
Not only will you be taking on the risk of leaving the comfort of traditional employment, and therefore a steady paycheck, but you will also be risking your business not working out and a lack of clients, comes with it a distinct lack of income.
If you’re wondering whether freelancing is right for you, you must ensure that you’re comfortable taking risks and that you’re incredibly hardworking, motivated and determined to make your freelancing endeavours a success so that there’s very little room for failure.
Are you able to take on many roles?
Let’s say that you decide to become a freelance writer, not only will you be taking on the role of actually being a writer, you will also likely be your own accountant, publicist, social media manager, financial expert, CEO, director, content creator and much more.
Being a freelancer isn’t just about taking on one role; you must be prepared to take on many roles and wear many hats when becoming a full-time freelancer.
Are you comfortable working by yourself?
While of course, you can decide to spend your working day in a coworking space or working in a coffee shop, more often than not, you’ll likely be working on your own a lot of the time.
This means you’ve got to be comfortable in your own company and you should also be prepared to face the loneliness that can sometimes arise when working for/by yourself. If you’re pretty happy with your own company and you’re able to get on with tasks without needing anyone else’s encouragement, then you should manage just fine as a freelancer.
Do you have good communication skills?
A large part of being a freelancer is being able to work with a variety of different clients.
Therefore, you should be equipped with excellent communication skills and you should be comfortable talking to and negotiating with numerous people on a daily basis. Your lines of communication with clients could be just via email, but you may also talk to some clients over the phone or even in person at various networking events.
Are you able to sell yourself and your skills?
Selling yourself and your skills as a freelancer is what will make you successful as you need to be able to obtain clients and customers and the best way to do so, is by putting yourself and your business out there and advertising your services in many different ways.
Being confident in your abilities is a very important part of freelancing, so you need to ensure that you’ve got the confidence to find and obtain new clients in order to build up your business.
So, is freelancing right for me?
Asking yourself the question “is freelancing right for me?” can be quite daunting at first, especially if you’re not 100% sold on the idea. Hopefully, the questions above that you need to ask yourself before deciding to become a freelancer will have given you a bit of clarity when it comes to making your decision.
If after reading this post you are sold on life as a freelancer and you know it is right for you, you should check out our posts on how to start freelancing and how to find your first client. If you are still on the fence, you may want to read about the advantages of being self-employed.
